WHY WE WALK: Honoring Lisa’s Legacy

Those who knew Lisa Josselyn say she was a friend to everyone she met. It’s part of what made her such a great fit for the role of overnight triage nurse at Care Dimensions. Fielding late night calls from those in distress, she not only had the knowledge to help, but also had the compassion to make it feel like an old friend was on the other end of the line, guiding you through a problem while directing help on the way.

“She had such a unique role,” said nurse Emily Sullivan, who was hired around the same time as Lisa nearly a decade ago and often worked the same shift with her. “If you called Care Dimensions overnight for help, it was Lisa who picked up the phone. It takes a special person to do that job and she did it so well.”

“She was always the pulse of our shift and the beacon of light in the middle of the night,” added nurse Ayanna Saunders, who also worked with Lisa for nearly a decade. “We just had a very strong connection, and were close both at work and outside of work.”

Lisa died unexpectedly in April, leaving behind her husband and three children, as well as two grandchildren. Colleagues were heartbroken.

“The evening shift is about 6 people, overnights can be 3 or 4,” said Emily. “We may not actually see each other often, but we’re a pretty tight knit group.”

“There was just something so special about Lisa,” recalled Jennifer Riley, Clinical Manager of Continuity of Care. “She had this unbelievable ability to connect with other people.”

They wanted to come up with a way to honor her memory, and quickly realized how they could best do that.

“She was an avid walker,” recalls Emily. “She would power walk around the building on her breaks. So we decided to form a team for the Walk for Hospice and named it ‘Lisa’s Legs.’ The name probably started off as a little joke, but it stuck.”

Emily, Ayanna and Jennifer quickly signed up for the team, as have many of Lisa’s colleagues who worked weekends with her.

For Ayanna, the Walk is a natural way for her to honor her friend.

“I walk multiple times a week and I would always share pictures with Lisa of where I walked, and she would let me know where she walked. So this year, it’s so fitting that I’ll be doing the Walk for Hospice in her honor.”

Emily has participated in the Walk for years and walked alongside Lisa at the event multiple times.

“Theres’s this serene energy on Walk Day and a really positive environment. I was glad I went the first time, and it keeps me coming back. This year, walking for Lisa, it’s going to be a wonderful way to honor her memory."

Make a donation to the Lisa’s Legs walk team by clicking here.

Register for this year’s Walk for Hospice here.

Some of the members of "Lisa's Legs" are seen here, alongside others who attended a recent memorial event for Lisa Josselyn.